Game Notes | Live Stats | Live Video
NORFOLK, Va. - After being on the road for the last five games, the Norfolk State women's basketball team returns home to host Morgan State on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off is at 4 p.m. at Joseph Echols Hall.
Media Coverage: The game will be broadcast live on WNSB Hot 91.1 with Ross Gordon on the call. Live stats will be available here. Live video and audio will also be available here.
All-Time Series: NSU leads the series with Morgan State, 16-13. The Spartans went 1-1 against the Lady Bears last season.
Last Time Out: Senior forward Rachel Gordon posted 17 points and 13 rebounds to lead Norfolk State to a 57-48 victory over Delaware State on Monday night at Memorial Hall. The Spartans are now 3-1 in conference play and 7-8 on the season.
Delaware State (4-11, 0-4) started the second half on a 16-4 run and took a 32-31 lead after a layup from Tierra Hawkins with 14:14 left in regulation. She led all scorers and scored 14 of her 17 points in the second half. The Lady Hornets came within four after Hawkins made a layup in the paint with 4:20 on the clock to make the score 45-41, but it was not enough as the Spartans ended the game on a 12-6 run to seal another MEAC victory.
Redshirt junior Rae Corbo also scored in double figures, adding 12 points and three assists for NSU. Freshman Logan Powell tallied eight points and five rebounds, while juniors Ebony Brown and Quineshia Leonard totaled seven and six points, respectively. Both Brown and Leonard each pulled down six boards. Rounding out the scoring effort for the Spartans were freshmen Kieera Basey, who had four points, and Dominique Harper, who finished the night with three points.
For the game, NSU shot 37.3 percent (19-of-51) from the floor and shot 70.4 percent (19-of-27) from the free throw line. The Spartans also outrebounded DSU, 43-39, including a 29-23 advantage in defensive rebounds.
About Morgan State: Morgan State fell to South Carolina State, 80-53,on Saturday afternoon at Hill Field House in Baltimore, Md. S.C. State's Kourtney Williams scored 12 of her game-high 22 points in the first half to lead four Lady Bulldogs in double figure scoring.
The loss was the Lady Bears' sixth consecutive loss. The loss also marked the fourth consecutive home loss for Morgan State, who went winless in its four-game home stand.
Morgan State (2-13, 0-2 MEAC) was led by Tracey Carrington, who finished with a team-high 16 points. Danielle Forrest added 10 points, while Dinah Jones scored nine points and had five rebounds. Simone Sampson led the Lady Bears with a game-high nine rebounds.
Last Year Against Morgan State: n the first meeting, Aivah Parham had a career-high 34 points and 12 rebounds to snap a six-game losing streak as NSU defeated Morgan State 81-68 at Joseph Echols Hall on Jan. 21, 2013. It was the Spartans first MEAC win of the regular season and the 81 points was the most scored by NSU all season.
Parham's 34 points was the first time an NSU player scored 30 points in a game since Feb. 25, 2012 when Whitney Long scored 32 points.
NSU outrebounded Morgan State 50-38 and outscored the Lady Bears 30-10 in the paint. The Spartans also outscored Morgan State 17-8 on second chance points.
NSU also held the Lady Bears to 30.8 percent (20-of-65) shooting from the field. Three Morgan State players reached double figures including Briana Coardes, who led the Lady Bears with 18 points. Bianca Jarrett logged 13 points and five rebounds and Whitney Southerland tallied 11 points in the loss to NSU.
The Spartans shot 40.0 percent (26-of-65) from the field and was 0-of-3 from behind the arc. Also scoring in double figures for NSU was Rachel Gordon. She had her third double-double of the season as she finished the game with 25 points and 12 rebounds.
In the second meeting, Parham had 14 points and two steals, but it was not enough as the Spartans fell to Morgan State, Feb.4 at Hill Field House.
Morgan State shot 38.5 percent (20-of-52) from the field. Aside from Southerland, Carrington was the only other Lady Bear to score in double-figures as she finished the night with 11 points and four rebounds.
The Spartans were held to just 26.8 percent (15-of-56) shooting on the night. Aside from Parham, two other NSU players scored in double-figures including Gordon, who finished the night with 11 points and nine rebounds. Batavia Owens also tallied 10 points and eight rebounds.
Scoring Leaders: Rae Corbo leads NSU in scoring, averaging 13.6 points per game followed by Rachel Gordon, who is averaging 11.9 points per game. Ebony Brown rounds out the top-three scoring leaders for NSU, averaging 10.2 points per game.
Double-Doubling: Rachel Gordon posted her second-straight double-double of the season with 17 points and 13 rebounds in NSU's win over Delaware State on Monday.
Spartans on A Roll: NSU has won three consecutive MEAC games so far this season. This is the best start in conference play for the NSU since the 2001-2002 season, where the Spartans started 4-0 in MEAC play.
Winning the Rebounding Battle: The Spartans currently rank third in the MEAC with 42.3 boards per game.
Moving Up the Charts: Rachel Gordon is in fifth place all-time in career rebounding at NSU with 908 rebounds. She needs 93 more boards to pass Sharon Wallace for first place, which means she needs to average only 7.8 boards over the next 12 games
Cracking the Top 10: Rae Corbo is tied for 10th all-time in career free throws made at NSU with 227. Corbo needs to make only eight more to pass Jennine Tank for ninth all-time. She needs 10 more to move into eighth all-time.
Corbo is also in 11th place all-time in 3-point field goals made at NSU with 55. She needs only four more to move into the top-10. Teammate Ebony Brown is in 12th place all-time in 3-point field goals made with 53. She needs six more to move into the top-10.
NCAA, MEAC Leaderboard: Rachel Gordon currently ranks No. 7 in the nation in rebounds per game and Rae Corbo is No. 77 in free throw percentage.
As a team, NSU currently ranks in the top 5 in 15 different categories in the MEAC, while NSU players rank in the top 5 in six different categories, including Rachel Gordon, who leads the league in rebounds, averaging 12.7 rebounds per game.
Follow NSU, Coach Clark on Twitter: In addition to its official athletic web site, you can also follow NSU athletics on the social networking site Twitter. Log onto www.twitter.com/NSUSpartans and become a follower of the Spartans today to get updates on all things NSU, including updates during games.
Coach Clark is also a part of the Twitter world. Check out www.twitter.com/dclarknsuwbb to hear more from the coach throughout the season.
Follow NSU on YouTube: You can also find the Spartans on YouTube here. Check out highlights from different NSU athletic events as well as interviews with players and coaches after the games.
Throughout the season, you can follow NSU athletics on YouTube with the Spartan Sports Zone. There you can find recaps of games with highlights and interviews with players and coaches. Check back at the YouTube home of NSU Athletics at www.nsuspartans.com for more on NSU women's basketball this year.
Follow NSU on Facebook: You can also follow the entire Norfolk State Athletic Department on its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/NorfolkStateAthletics.
